Rainbow Scale
by Tsukasa-kun
Summary: I couldn't find a category for Dawn of Mana...so I'm uploading this to the Secret/Legend of Mana category...am I really the first to post one for Dawn of Mana? Anyway, this is the story of Rae, Lekius' wife and of their romance. Will include Keldy.
1. Chapter 1

Rae stepped out of the boat. A chill ran through the air, causing her slight shoulders to tremble.  
She looked at her small son, asleep in the boat. Sighing, she gently picked him up "C'mon, Marcus.  
let's get going.". Rae looked at the island before her, the memories coming back to her.

"Rae, are you all right?" A gentle voice came behind her. "Oh Keldy..." She breathed "Is this really the same Illusia we grew up in? It's so...so......" her voice broke and tears streamed from her face. She heard the cry of her newborn daughter behind her, where Keldy was standing. "Here, give me Rosetta, you take Marcus."

Keldy complied and looked at her closely. "It's been too long, hasn't it?"

She nodded in agreement. "Far too long."

She closed her eyes and his image came to her mind, causing her to bury her face in Keldy's chest and whisper the name of her one and only.

"...Lekius..."

-THREE YEARS AGO-

"You're really leaving then, aren't you Lek?" A female voice piped up. The young green-haired archer paused whetting his hunting knife and looked into the emerald eyes of Ramalle, a young orphan much like his best friend, Keldric. Also like Keldy, she too came from a faraway place as a small child. But unlike his precocious friend, she didn't have the proper gift of protection, like Ritzia's flower.

Plus he felt the need to stretch his legs a little in the deep forest outside the villiage.

"Don't worry, Rae." He stood up and looked into her bewitching eyes. "It'll only be for a short while.  
I just need to get more real-time practice in case something ever does happen."

Rae held him close "It's just...I worry about you all the time. Just please...be careful, all right?"

Lekius ran his fingers through her platinum hair. Nodding, he grabbed his bow and took off to the forest borderline.

-

A day had passed...it just wasn't here. Lekius cursed his rotten luck and kept searching. Finally after what seemed like forever and a day he heard a shrill roar. He ran to the forest glen where the noise came from.

"What in the name of the goddess...is THAT!?"

Before him was a creature he had not seen the likes of before in his life. It was lizardlike...but it was huge and the scales were...unusually shiny. He wished for a closer look but the snapping jaws told him otherwise. Lekius, being a deft archer, drew his bow and arrow.

"All right, if it's a fight you want it's a fight you'll get!" He fired a warning shot, aiming between the creature's eyes. However, the lizard was more perceptive than he had hoped. It deflected the arrow as easily as Lek would swat a fly.

"Damn it..." he cursed. "This thing sure is smart!" Just then a giant tail swept around but being agile, Lekius easily evaded the attack. He jumped up into the trees, but unfortunately the creature saw him and attacked.  
Lek jumped again and hid in another tree. The creature sniffed and snorted around the splintered tree while Lek studied his target.

"Is that a...Komodo Dragon?" He breathed as the sun sparkled off its scales. "So bright...the scales look almost like prisms." He gasped. "That's it!" With new resolve, he looked for a weakness...and found it at the tendon right beneath the jaw. It was a small target, but a risk he was willing to take to retrieve those scales.

Lekius jumped from his roost, landing perfectly on his feet. He ran as hard and as fast as he could,  
scrambling up the spine of the dragon. It lashed but he kept a steady foothold. Huffing and puffing,  
Lekius readied an arrow and jumped off its back. He twisted his body, aimed and fired. With a violent roar and a tremble, the giant beast fell down dead.

With his feet planted firmly on the ground again, Lek sauntered over to the giant lizard. "Sorry,"  
he breathed "but I need your scales. If you'll only give me four I'd be satisfied." As he was talking he took out his hunter's knife and pulled off the brightest scales he could find. "Thank you, now rest in peace mighty creature." Lek safely put the scales away, stretched, and decided it was time to call it a day, right then and there.

-

Later that night, Lek sprawled out over his bedding, full from a supper of giant lizard. "It really is as legendary as they say..." he smiled, rubbing his belly. With a contented sigh, he fell asleep, weary from the days events.

-

Lekius awoke to a disturbing snuffle. Rubbing his eyes, he peeked at his sack and sure enough, a pesky Rabite was nosing through his satchel. He smirked, and playfully fired an arrow right above its head. The Rabite squealed and hopped away, cursing Lekius all the way down to his roots. Lek laughed, retrieved his wayward arrow, and prepared to return to the village.

As he was backtracking through the woods, he stopped dead in his tracks. "Wait! I can't just give her the scales as they are right now! How can I make them so she can wear them?" He continued onward, thinking about it. "Not a covering...too big for earrings. Hey, how about I string them into a necklace!" He stopped again, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the now-hard scales, safely wrapped in a leaf.  
Taking out his hunting knife, he bore tiny holes into the scales. "Now for a string..." He looked everywhere, finding nothing. He sighed, at a loss, and plopped down next to a steam. He sighed and gazed into the water,  
suddenly having an idea. "I know!" Again with his knife, he clipped a long lock of his hair, braided it, and strung it through the small holes he had just made. Lek inspected his handiwork, grinning in approval. "There." Wrapping it up again in the leaf, he sprinted back to the village. "I...hope she likes it!!"

~OMAKE~ RAE: Whew!  
LEK: It's about time!  
KELDY: *sulks* I wish I had more of a role than THIS.  
LAWLIE (me): Shush you! *hits him upside the head* You will, it's just not time yet! You need to be patient,  
I haven't even finished the game yet!  
KELDY: You mean that.  
RAE: ...you're writing a fanfic.  
LEK: ...about a game.  
RITZIA: ...that you haven't even FINISHED yet?  
LAWLIE: Patience, my young padawans! It will be soon!  
RAE: When will Lek and I get our moment?  
LAWLIE: You...will! *huff*  
LEK: Careful...I think she's about to blow a fuse and then all the creative energy will run out.  
LAWLIE: *ahem!* ANYway, thanks so much and continue to cheer for us!  
FAYE: *hovers above her head* Can I cover her with sugar yet?? :3 


	2. Chapter 2

Rae hummed as she walked to the village well. The last few days were so peaceful and quiet, even with the emptiness she constantly felt in the pit of her stomach whenever her love wasn't around. "BUJUUUUU! GET BACK HERE!" A feminine voice sounded off in the distance. Rae chuckled, figuring that Ritzia's frisky pet Rabite, Buju,  
got loose again. "Keldy! Help me!"

The young palehaired maiden giggled as she drew water. As she set it down a swift darkness swept over her eyes and a familiar voice whispered in her ear: "Guess who this is and I just might set you free." Rae gasped. "L-Lek? You're home!" Sure enough, the hands were removed and she turned her head to look into the soft brown eyes of her lover. She threw her arms around him, completely forgetting about her water pail. "I've missed you so much! Your hair, you've cut it off!" Lekius held her closely as though she might blow away in the slight breeze. "I know, my sweet. I've missed you too." He kissed her hair and breathed in her flowery scent. "Come with me on a little date, right now." She laughed.  
"But you've only just got back!"

He gave her a Look and she knew instantly that she was defeated. Rae blushed. "Al-all right, just as soon as I get this water pail back to my house." Lekius grinned in triumph as he picked up the pail and strode alongside her.

_________________________

"So tell me, did you find what you were looking for?" Rae asked a while later as they strolled hand-in-hand by a bubbling brook. Lekius grinned and his eyes shone. "It was such an adrenaline rush! I fought the biggest creature I have ever laid my archer eyes on. But you should have seen it, such magnificance! It was huge but quick on its feet. But that's not the reason why I asked you to come this way with me." He pushed back some long willow branches and revealed a beautiful little wildflower bed right by the stream. Birds sang and flowers of various shapes and sizes swayed in a gentle breeze. Rae gasped, her eyes shining in wonder. "Th-this...this is the most beautiful place I have ever seen!" Lekius smiled as his eyes gazed upward at the clear blue sky. "I came across this place during my travels. It reminded me of you."

Rae walked around in a daze, stopping every now and then to sniff a flower and dance around, giggling like the young maiden she was. She plucked some of the flowers, weaving herself a little crown. Finally, she sat down beneath the shade of a cherry tree, its blossoms being blown around everywhere. Lekius sat down right beside her. She looked at him, her smile as wide as the ocean. "Oh Lekius! This place is just wonderful! Thank you ever so much for bringing me here."

Lek smiled in return, brushing a stray cherry blossom off her cheek. "Actually," he confessed. "There's more to it than that." He reached into a satchel and withdrew a small package, wrapped in a giant leaf. He presented it to her and watched with anticipation as she unwrapped it, revealing the scale necklace he had made for her. She gasped.  
"Oh Lekius...this is just beautiful!! Are those rainbow scales?"

"To symbolize your beauty, like a million colors splashed across the sky."

"A-and is this your hair?"

"So I'll always be there for you, protecting you, no matter how far apart we are from each other."

Tears glistened in Rae's eyes as she turned to Lek, who was now on one knee in front of her. "Ramalle," He said,  
taking her hand. "Will you marry me?"

Rae, her clouded with tears, nodded enthusiastically and quickly replied: "Yes, yes of course I will!" And with that,  
Lek took the necklace from her. She gathered her hair from her neck and allowed him to tie the necklace around her neck. Tiny shivers raced up her spine as she felt his fingers brush against her. When he was finished, her hair fell back around her neck as he helped her up. Lek lifted a scale up with the tip of his finger. "You look absolutely stunning, my love."

And with that, his hand moved behind her head and slowly drew their faces close to each other, ending their perfect outing with a passionate kiss.

---OMAKE-  
LAWLIE: AND We're through with another chapter! Sorry this one was so short, everyone, but everything seemed to come together so smoothly so quickly.  
RAE: Cut it out, you just wanted to watch us makeout while you stood over by that tree.  
LEK: ?  
KELDY: Who would have thought?  
RITZIA: The shame!  
ALL: A voyeur!  
LAWLIE: (shock) I did NOTHING of the sort! I was glancing...for....my fic! How else was I gonna get it all down accurately? (everyone looms around her, including Buju the rabite) Science? (looms closer) Uh, parley?

AND SO, THE AUTHOR HAD TO COMPENSATE BY GIVING EVERYONE A GIANT CHOCOLATE RABITE. IF YOU WANT TO ACTUALLY VIEW FLIES COMING OUT OF SOMEONE'S WALLET, HERS IS THE ONE TO STEAL.

(NOTE: A voyeur is someone who watches sexual activity from a vantage point.) 


End file.
